Monday, September 6, 2010

Killzone: Space Marines and Orks

It's going to take some time to get my new team "Baker's Dozen" ready for use in games of Killzone but I do want to start playing as soon as possible. To that end I've spent some time over the last few days merrily going through boxes of miniatures to see what could be used right away. I made some nifty discoveries which I'll be writing about over the coming week or so, the first of which I am presenting tonight in the form of these two opposing Killzone teams.

The beta edition of Big Jim'sSpecial Operations: Killzone is poised for release tomorrow but I thought I'd enjoy putting together some teams to start getting a better sense of the game. These are likely rather basic teams comprised almost entirely of standard models with very little in the way of special equipment or personal upgrades. I therefore don't anticipate having to make too many changes to them to stay in line with the evolving ruleset or to scale down for lower point games. What follows is a look at the first set of teams that I will be trying out in the coming days, Space Marines and Orks

This team constitutes most of what's left from my first 40k army intentionally collected as such. It seems like there are many interesting things you can do for a Space Marines team in Killzone by selecting individuals from all the different types of units available. In this case however I've put together essentially just a tactical squad with a couple extra specialists attached for the mission at hand. The most basic Space Marine still represents the pinnacle of bio-engineering and military training. I like the idea that their standard troopers are on par with the elite soldiery found in many other armies. It's a pretty common theme in GW and Black Library fiction and seemed like a fun way to go for this group.

You say something strange is happening on the planet's surface? Simple. Load Marines into a pod and drop a Tactical squad in to deal with it, whatever it is. Problem solved.

Well, that's the idea behind this group at least. Basic, no frills, flexible, tough... Space Marines.

Killzone: Orks - 250 Points

Nob (Team Leader): slugga and power klaw, 'eavy armour (50)

Nobz x 2: slugga and power klaw, 'eavy armour (100)

Nob: slugga and choppa, 'eavy armour (25)

Ork Boyz x 11: sluggas and choppas (66)

Gretchin x 3: blastas (9)

Again nothing fancy with these guys but there are at least some grots and nobz providing a little variety to the list. The goal with this group was to max out on the number of models allowed in a single Killzone team so that I can try out a more screaming-horde style of play, if such exists at this scale of skirmish gaming. I don't think of these Orks as a specialized team chosen for a particular mission but rather simply those Nobz and their underlings who happened to be closest at hand when the opportunity for a fight presented itself. They're Goffs so I think they'd approve of that approach.

I should be able to start playing games of Killzone this week with only a few scheduling details that still need to be resolved. Until then I'm going to put together some more teams including ones for Imperial Guard, Chaos Marines, Necrons, and Tyrandis, though without anything nearly as vintage as the miniatures featured in this post. I'll also check to see if anything needs to be adjusted for the Ork and Space Marine teams once I've had a chance to read through the new Killzone stuff. I'll post some sort of update to cover all that.

Oh, and there's quite a lot of painting to do as well. Good times ahead.

A classic match-up: blue marines vs. ork clones.

In time I'll report on how things go once I've played through a number of the scenarios. If everything works and Killzone turns out to be as much fun as I hope it will be then I may also attempt writing one or two more detailed reviews of individual games. Regardless I'm sure I'll have plenty to chatter about soon.

Thanks, Big jim! This just seems like an ideal way to make use of those odd units and miniatures leftover from old armies. I agree, it's been a treat seeing all the old school Killzone teams that people have been showing off... great fun!

Oh wow, thanks! I noticed an error with the Marine list as I calculated the sergeant's point cost with Resilient being 3 points instead of the proper 5, but I fixed it by just removing the upgrade and editing in the correction. Thanks again, I appreciate it.

Nice little write up, I love the Killzone idea and can't wait for Big Jim to post the updated rules. While I like the BIG games where I can unload lots of Marine goodness, these smaller skirmish games work great when teaching youngsters the mechanics of mini-wargaming. Will do one of my own once I can see the final rules and can sit down with some minis.

@ BJC Mini Studio - Thanks! I'm really happy to have Killzone available as a nice change of pace from the usual larger scale battles. I've had two young relatives ask me in the past few weeks if I would teach them how to play 40k and I think this will be a great for them to learn. Plus gaming time has become rather limited for me so being able to a couple of scenarios in under an hour is a big help. If you get a chance I'd love to see a review of your team once you get things squared away.

Spectacular blog, I love the old minis - they bring back memories for me as I used to own a ton of those rogue trader/beaky Space Marines (also painted blue, but with red stripes on their beaks!). I also had a box set of the 1st edition Space Orks which may even pre-date the ones you've got there.

Thank you very much, fudal, that's very kind of you and I'm glad you liked checking out the blog. I think those Orks you mentioned did come out before the ones pictured here. I don't remember when these were made but I believe it was around 2nd or 3rd edition. I had some of the earlier Space Orks but unfortunately I think they've been lost over the years... too many moving boxes, too many trips through the warp. Those were some really cool miniatures, though. Thanks!

Awesome! Be sure you take some pictures if you get a chance, it'd be cool to see those Eldar. Also it'd be great to see the type of stories or scenarios you come up with to set the stage for your games. Thanks, Gyro!

@ Loquacious - I'm glad I could help bring back some happy memories, thanks! I remember having a great time painting those little guys and I'm thankful they survived all this time. It seems like Ork models have always been characterful but the old ones really are charming.

@ Thor - Thanks, man! That's cool that you mix in the oldies with your current armies. I should give that a try and call them the veterans. No promises but I'll do my best to make the coming battle reports interesting. But like I said, no promises...

OK, first post was eaten by the warp. Lets see if this one makes it...

Awesome post JJ- I recall getting my newbie butt handed to me a few times by those orks many, many years ago! They still look as good today as they did way back when.

I agree that Kill Teams is a great way to get younger/new players interested in the game. Its a wonderful method to teach someone the move/shoot/assault basics without breaking out a huge box set and a giant rule book. Great move guys.

Haha, I do remember you going up against those guys way back when. Amazing that they survived as well as did considering my old method of transportation was to just carry them all around together in a big Ziploc bag. Ah, those were the days!

About Me

Hi, my name is Jason. I live on the side of a mountain a few miles north of Asheville, North Carolina. I am a stay-at-home dad and am currently losing my hair. I've been happily painting miniatures and gaming since sometime around 1987. Besides being a sci-fi and fantasy nerd, I'm also an avid fan of The Simpsons and H.P. Lovecraft. Thanks for checking out my blog, hopefully someday it will get better.

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